On Settlement Releases

A settlement agreement between two groups of real estate partners released all of the parties claims in connection with two named lawsuits, but did not include any release for a third lawsuit. The third case proceeded in litigation for another two years before the defendants decided that the plaintiffs’ decision to continue the lawsuit was a breach of the prior settlement agreement. So the defendant filed a fourth lawsuit for declaratory judgment, breach of contract, and related tort claims. On the first day of trial in lawsuit #4, the court ruled that the settlement agreement did not include the third lawsuit, then granted directed verdict on all of the plaintiff’s claims. The Court of Appeals affirmed, holding that the settlement language unambiguously referred  to lawsuit #1 and # 2, not to lawsuit #3.

Mikob Props., Inc. v. Joachim, No. 05-13-01613-CV